The Legacy Of The Civil War - 1508 Words

From 1861 to 1865 more than 620,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were massacred. In only four years America annihilated the number of American soldiers killed in all other wars combined. America experienced her first full scale house division. The people were in such confusion, Reconstruction Acts had to be used to bring the country back together. Civil War introduced a split country, breaks of states from the union, the South denying rights to emancipated slaves, improving the lifestyle for African Americans, death, and reconstruction of America. Abraham Lincoln, 16th president of the United States, endured a difficult time period in American history, the Civil War. America was split. The South was a huge proponent of slavery while its†¦show more content†¦War efforts shift gears from bringing the union back to abolishing slavery after Lincoln witnessed terrible treatment given to African Americans. The emancipation proclamation announced â€Å"†¦all slaves in rebellious states henceforward shall be free (Wills).† Lincoln did not want to upset the South from ever returning to the Union, but his conscious told him something had to be done about slavery before preserving the union could be achieved (Wills). On December 20th, 1860, South Carolina dissolved from the union. Unknown to the nation, the deadliest war in America had begun. Lincoln seized federal property and military installations when South Carolina seceded, South Carolina refused. Shore batteries of the seceded state open fired on the Union garrison holding Fort Sumter on April 12th, 1861 (Wills). Lincoln henceforth knew the issue could only be resolved with blood. The union would not be repaired without a fight. At the end of war the secession of states created chaos in the capital as officials tried to figure out what punishment Southern states ought to receive (Reconstruction). The North was at a loss for how to punish the South. In 1863, Lincoln proposed a plan (now called the 10 percent plan) allowing ex-confederate states to rejoin the union once 10 percent of its votes swore an oath of allegiance to the United States. Lincoln looked for a peaceful resolution rather than harsh punishment. Even after